Mission Marsh

It had been quite a while since I had the chance to walk around Mission Marsh, but I decided to do so this past week. The cold weather started easing up a bit and there was an early frost in the morning so everything had a bit of a freeze to it. The sun was a bit higher then I would have liked but I had to work with what I had. For those who don't know Mission Marsh too well, there is one area specifically that usually has a lot of deer wandering around. On the way to the Marsh I already saw about 3-4 deer, but I knew I would be heading back that way on the way out. 

So my first stop was the actual Marsh. Of course, when you first arrive in the parking lot, it's almost impossible not to notice the view of the Sleeping Giant. Luckily for me, the mix of shadows and slightly cold frosty weather made for some pretty cool images. I then made my way down the boardwalk, which you technically aren't supposed to enter but it just meant it wasn't plowed. The viewfinders were taking down but I actually got a couple good detail photos of the frost on them. 

As I came around the trail I heard a whole lot of chirping from the squirrels. I spotted one in a bare tree so I proceeded to sneak some shots of him. Well, to put it lightly, he was not impressed. He kept running up and down the tree, looking for a way out. Finally, as I got a little to close for comfort, he literally jumped from the top of the tree, which was at least 30 feet in the air onto the snow below. He then climbed back up another tree and chirped at me some more.

I decided to then drive back to see if there were any deer on the road in the area I mentioned earlier. I parked on one of the side streets and immediately saw about 10 of them scattered in the forest and a few on the road. I didn't really have a true zoom lens but I did bring my Fuji XT-1 and 16-55mm (24-70), so it had to do. I managed to get a couple 'close up' photos of the deer(s). 

There was also a couple old vehicles half buried in the snow which actually made for two of my favourite photos of the walk. Before I left I decided to head down the other side road and that's when I saw where the rest of the deer were in the backyard of the one house on the street. As I stood there taking photos of them, they stood completely still and just stared right back at me. They were probably wondering if had food. I will have to go back soon with a slightly longer lens and see what I can get. As always, thanks for stopping by!

Centennial Park

With the weather getting a bit better these days I am finding myself out a bit more taking photos. After seeing it snowed quite a bit I decided to head back to Centennial Park to see how it looked. I definitely wasn't disappointed. There was a ton of snow out there and all the trails were barely explored yet. As far as I could tell, I was the only one out there. Mind you, this was at 9:45 in the morning. There's something peaceful about walking through snow covered trails early in the morning. 

Anyone who follows this blog and sees these posts knows that I enjoy focusing on the details, and getting those close up shots. They are often almost abstract in most cases. This time around I used my Fuji X-T1 and 16-55 lens to try and capture some wider angle photos. I'm very much looking forward to using this lens this year for weddings. 

As soon as I arrived and made my way down the first part of the trail, I felt like I was being watched. Low and behold, I turned to my left and there was a deer checking me out. Of course I took a photo of him. I saw how close I could get but before I knew it, he was running off into the forest. Beyond that I walked around the snow covered cabins and then eventually up around the stable. I think the horses thought I was bring them food because they came right up to me. I saw they didn't have any hay yet so I'm sure they were quite hungry! It did give me the chance to get some great close up photos of them. 

I finished off my walk by heading to the top of the trail that overlooks Thunder Bay. Once there I got some great shots of the powerlines and overall view. And that was it. Overall, it was such a nice and relaxing walk. Hopefully we get at least one more snowfall before winter comes to an end. As long as it doesn't get too cold!